28 December - Joint statement by the UN in Syria, the Syrian Arab Red Crescent and the International Committee of the Red Cross

The UNITED NATIONS IN SYRIA
THE SYRIAN ARAB RED CRESCENT
AND THE INTERNATIONAL COMMITTEE OF THE RED CROSS

ON THE EVACUATION OF INJURED PEOPLE AND RELATIVES IN SYRIA’S IDLEB AND RIF DAMASCUS GOVERNORATES

Syria: Over 450 people including injured evacuated from hard to reach and besieged towns

Damascus (28 December 2015) - The United Nations (UN) in Syria, in partnership with the Syrian Arab Red Crescent (SARC), and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) have successfully facilitated the evacuation of more than 450 people including the injured and their accompanying family members, following a local Agreement concerning the Syrian towns of Foua, Kafraya in Idleb and Zabadani and Madaya in Rif Damascus.

While the United Nations and partners are not party to the Agreement, the humanitarian actors are keen to see its provisions implemented as people in these towns live in a difficult situation, and the injured people urgently need medical assistance.

Earlier today, the UN in Syria, SARC and ICRC carried out coordinated tasks, which led to the evacuation of 338 persons from the towns of Foua and Kafraya, and 126 people from the towns of Zabadani and Madaya. They were simultaneously evacuated by land and air through Turkey and Lebanon to the agreed final destinations where those requiring longer term medical care will receive it.

Through the facilitation of the UN, SARC and ICRC in Syria, and in close coordination with the ICRC in Lebanon, the Lebanese Red Cross, the UN in Turkey and Lebanon and IHH Humanitarian Relief Foundation, an NGO partner in Turkey, the injured were transported out of Syria to Lebanon where thorough medical checks were conducted and urgent medical assistance was provided.

“The humanitarian community in Syria is keen to see the swift implementation of the next phases of the Four Towns Agreement including humanitarian access to people in these towns,” said Yacoub El-Hillo, UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Syria. “We stand ready to continue providing relief and livelihoods assistance to the millions of people wherever they are in Syria as they bear the brunt of this crisis,” El Hillo added.

“Today’s humanitarian action shows that even in the middle of fierce conflicts, agreements can be reached, solely for the purpose of alleviating human suffering,” said Marianne Gasser, Head of the ICRC Delegation in Syria. “Parties involved in the fighting, must allow access by humanitarian actors to all people who have been affected by years of fighting, especially to those in besieged and hard to reach areas, “she continued.

Dr Abdul Rahman Attar, the President of the SARC said: “Access to medical care is a right of every wounded person regardless of which side they belong to. SARC’s teams of volunteers, first-aiders and ambulances were heavily involved in the various stages of this operation inside Syria.”

On his side, the UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura said that the UN’s clear goal is to reach, as soon as possible a nationwide ceasefire. “Meanwhile, initiatives like this one bring relief to besieged or isolated communities and have great value,” de Mistura said. “They help the perception that a nationwide ceasefire brokered by the members of the International Syria Support Group is doable and that the UN can and will do its part.”

Across Syria, around 4.5 million people living in hard-to-reach areas continue with limited access to basic life-saving assistance and protection. Almost 400,000 of them live in besieged areas with little or no access to basic supplies or assistance. The United Nations and partners continue to urge all parties to the conflict to find a political solution, and to ensure unimpeded and sustained humanitarian access.
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26 December - Statement attributable to the Spokesperson for the Special Envoy for Syria11 December - International Syria Support Group meeting24 November: Statement attributable to the spokesperson of the United Nations Special Envoy for Syria14 November - Statement of the International Syria Support Group6 November - Statement attributable to the Spokesperson of the Special Envoy for Syria30 October - Vienna Communique on Syria

Meeting in Vienna, on October 30, 2015, China, Egypt, the EU, France, Germany, Iran, Iraq, Italy, Jordan, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, the United Nations, and the United States [“the participants”] came together to discuss the grave situation in Syria and how to bring about an end to the violence as soon as possible.

The participants had a frank and constructive discussion, covering major issues. While substantial differences remain among the participants, they reached a mutual understanding on the following:

3) The rights of all Syrians, regardless of ethnicity or religious denomination, must be protected.

4) It is imperative to accelerate all diplomatic efforts to end the war.

5) Humanitarian access will be ensured throughout the territory of Syria, and the participants will increase support for internally displaced persons, refugees, and their host countries.

6) Da'esh, and other terrorist groups, as designated by the U.N. Security Council, and further, as agreed by the participants, must be defeated.

7) Pursuant to the 2012 Geneva Communique and U.N. Security Council Resolution 2118, the participants invited the U.N. to convene representatives of the Government of Syria and the Syrian opposition for a political process leading to credible, inclusive, non-sectarian governance, followed by a new constitution and elections. These elections must be administered under U.N. supervision to the satisfaction of the governance and to the highest international standards of transparency and accountability, free and fair, with all Syrians, including the diaspora, eligible to participate.

8) This political process will be Syrian led and Syrian owned, and the Syrian people will decide the future of Syria.

9) The participants together with the United Nations will explore modalities for, and implementation of, a nationwide ceasefire to be initiated on a date certain and in parallel with this renewed political process.

The participants will spend the coming days working to narrow remaining areas of disagreement, and build on areas of agreement. Ministers will reconvene within two weeks to continue these discussions.

2 October - Statement Attributable to the Spokesperson of the Special Envoy for Syria, Mr. Staffan de Mistura22 September - Statement attributable to the Spokesperson of the Special Envoy for Syria

As part of the implementation of the initiative set out by Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura before the Security Council on 29 July 2015 and endorsed by the Council in its Presidential Statement of 17 August 2015 (S/PRST/2015/15), the Special Envoy and his Deputy Ramzy Ezzeldin Ramzy met over the last two days with the following facilitators appointed by the Secretary-General to head the intra-Syrian thematic working groups, under the direction of the Special Envoy:

Mr. Jan Egeland as facilitator for the Safety and Protection thematic Working Group; Mr. Nicolas Michel as facilitator for the Political and Legal Issues thematic Working Group; Mr. Volker Perthes as facilitator for the Military, Security and Counterterrorism thematic Working Group; and Ms. Birgitta Holst Alani as facilitator for the Continuity of Public Services, Reconstruction and Development thematic Working Group.

They discussed draft agendas with a view to ensuring coordination and parallel progress of the Working Groups.

Mr. de Mistura has just returned from consultations with Syrian interlocutors most recently in Damascus and Istanbul. These visits complement ongoing OSE outreach to regional capitals and elsewhere. The Special Envoy is now heading to NY to carry these discussions forward in the margins of the General Assembly.

“The Working Groups are intended to provide Syrians with a platform to address in-depth themes that are certainly not new, but have lacked to date sustained intra-Syrian discussion. It is hoped that their outcomes could eventually set the stage for a Syrian agreement to end the conflict on the basis of the Geneva Communique,” Mr. de Mistura said.

While the participation of Syrians is central for this process to move forward, the Security Council has also “emphasised the need for robust international and regional assistance” in support of the efforts of the Special Envoy.

Mr. de Mistura will continue consultations with relevant actors to accelerate such support. “This is the defining humanitarian challenge of our times,” he reiterated. “The Syrians deserve that we move faster towards a political solution”.

13 September - Statement of the Special Envoy for Syria to the Ministerial meeting of the League of Arab States

10 September - Statement attributable to the Spokesperson for the United Nations Special Envoy for Syria1st September - Special Envoy for Syria met with the Deputy Foreign Minister of Arab African Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Iran17 August - Special Envoy for Syria condemned yesterday's air raids on the town of Duma 14 August - Special Envoy for Syria condemns shelling of Damascus Suburbs12 August - Special Envoy for Syria welcomes the release of human rights activist and journalist5 August - Secretary-General encouraged by Security Council’s support for latest proposal on Syria5 August - Special Envoy explains his proposal on thematic discussions29 July - Remarks by the Secretary-General to the Security Council on the situation in Syria29 July - Special Envoy for Syria briefs Security Council on the situation in Syria

23 July22 July21 July20 July15 July14 July13 July11 July
The United Nations Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura ended his visit to Cairo where he met with the Egyptian Minister of Foreign Affairs His Excellency Mr. Sameh Shoukry and the National Security Adviser Mrs. Fayza Aboulnaga.

The discussions revolved around the way forward to support Syrian parties in their search of a political solution to the conflict and the relevance of all international efforts exerted to put an end to the suffering of the Syrian people.

Mr. de Mistura also met with several members of the Syrian opposition who were present in Cairo.

The Special Envoy will be continuing his consultations with Member States in the region in the coming few days.

10 July2 July26 & 27 June25 & 26 June19 June
Within the framework of the Geneva Consultations, Deputy Special Envoy for Syria Ramzy Ezzeldin Ramzy met today with representatives of the Syrian civil society, including Mr. Zedoun Al Zoubi and Mr. Tawfik Chamaa of the Union of Syrian Medical Relief Organizations. They briefed Mr. Ramzy on the escalating armed conflict and deteriorating situation on the ground, including the dire conditions of medical facilities, as well as on the work of Syrian civil society organizations. They also shared perspectives for a political solution and discussed ways how the civil society could contribute to efforts in reaching a political solution to the Syrian conflict.

18 June16 June15 June
Within the framework of the Geneva Consultations, Deputy Special Envoy for Syria Ramzy Ezzeldin Ramzy met today with representatives of leading Syrian civil society organizations, including Mr. Fadel Al Shokfa and Mr. Wael Aleji of the Syrian Network for Human Rights. They briefed on the situation on the ground, and discussed prospects for a political solution in Syria.

Mr. Ramzy met with Mr. Haitham Manna, who briefed on the outcomes of the Cairo II meeting. The two discussed the ongoing efforts of the Syrian political, armed and civil society groups to find ways to end the conflict in Syria through political means.

Mr. Ramzy also met with a Palestinian delegation, headed by Ambassador Ibrahim Khraishi, who briefed on the situation of the Palestine refugee community in Syria. The two also discussed the situation in the region and prospects for ending the conflict in Syria.

At the end of today’s meetings, Mr. Ramzy again registered the continued plea of the Syrian groups for an urgent end to the conflict. He stressed that there was no alternative for the United Nations to sparing no effort to help reach a political solution that would meet the aspirations of the Syrian people for peace, dignity and justice.

11 June10 June9 June8 June
In the framework of the Geneva Consultations, the United Nations Special Envoy for Syria, Mr. Staffan de Mistura, met today with a delegation from the Aga Khan Foundation, composed of Mr. Mohammad Wardeh, Mr. Mohammad Seifo and Mr. Ali Esmaiel. The delegation members discussed with Mr. de Mistura the situation on the ground and shared their perspectives for a political solution.

“Civil society organizations are an important element in conflict resolution, particularly their efforts to ensure that views and concerns of all parts of societies are addressed as they can bring the voice of people and communities on the ground,” Mr. de Mistura said at the end of his meeting. “This is why their contribution is critical for a sustainable political solution which would promote human rights, pluralism and democracy,” he added.

Geneva consultations are a rolling process to seek views of all Syrian and relevant regional and international parties on the operationalization of the Geneva Communiqué.
In this context, Mr. de Mistura continues to meet separately with Syrian actors from inside and outside Syria, as well as with concerned regional and international players.5 June
Within the framework of the ongoing Geneva Consultations, Deputy Special Envoy Ramzy Ezzeldine Ramzy met today in Geneva with representatives of the Union of Syriac Women and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), who briefed on the situation in Syria. They discussed ways to support people in Syria in their daily humanitarian needs. Mr. Ramzy also discussed with the representatives of the Union of Syriac Women perspectives on a political solution to the Syrian conflict which could meet the needs of diverse components, which make up integral parts of the Syrian society.

At the end of today's meetings, Mr. Ramzy stressed that, "all should put their differences aside to ensure that aid reaches all those in need, but ultimately only a political solution would allow to address the deepening humanitarian crisis in a sustainable manner." While highlighting the urgent need for a political solution to the Syrian conflict, he added that, "it is critical that women organizations are included in any political process, fully participate in it and contribute to it".